Mumbai, Feb 27 (IANS): Maharashtra is on track to achieve its goal of a $1 Trillion economy soon, said Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Tuesday, even as he announced that a Maharashtra Bhavan would be built in Ayodhya for pilgrims from the state.

Ajit Pawar, who is also the state’s Finance & Planning Minister presented the Interim Budget 2024-2025 on Tuesday and announced a slew of proposals while making allocations for expenditure over the next four months before the full budget is tabled.

Ajit Pawar said that a new Micro and Small Enterprises Policy will be implemented with 18 hubs for small-scale industries to be established in the state.

Five industrial parks will be set up at different locations in the state to boost exports, the Mirkarwada Fishing Port will be renovated and a provision of Rs 300 crore has been made for the Bhagwat Port, both in Ratnagiri.

The government will take up work on 7,000 kms of roads network in the state, besides increasing the railway network and a proposal has been submitted for 11 Maratha forts to be declared as UNESCO World Heritage sites.

The government will provide solar energy sets to 37,000 Anganwadis in the state that have no access to electricity, and 850,000 new solar agriculture pumps will be given on demand under a new scheme launched for state farmers.

He announced a provision of Rs 19,000 crore for public works and Rs 10,000 crore for urban development schemes, and said that Maharashtra Bhavans would be constructed in Srinagar for tourists and in Ayodhya for pilgrims.

The state will make available 5,000 pink autorickshaws for employment to women, give one crore water taps under the Har Ghar Jal Yojana, and spend Rs 2,500 crore for flood prevention schemes.

An important announcement pertains to the proposal to build a sea bridge from Bandra-Versova to Palghar for better connectivity to Mumbai.

Ajit Pawar said that the government is committed to attract more investments to achieve the target of a $1 Trillion state economy.

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